welsh/hungarian rarebit

Brunch

I had this pegged for brunch last week, but because Kate made the baked potatoes with the cheese sauce, I thought it might be overkill.

Welsh Rarebit has an interesting lore, and one that needs to taken with a grain of salt. Since the poor of Wales would hunt rabbit as their main meat, lacking bigger game, such as deer, rabbits were a poor man's food. Cheese was also considered to be a staple of the poor. As an insult then, a bread topped with cheese sauce, earned the term Welsh Rabbit:

Over time Rabbit morphed into Rarebit by virtue of pronunciation.

There you have a semi-factual, but totally-assumed history of the Welsh Rarebit.

Back to the food; Rarebit has also been recreated into British Rarebit, Irish Rarebit, etc. There is no precise recipe for this since the liquid can be anything from water or cream to wine or ale. It usually has some cheese, some mustard, and occasionally onion.

Totally up for interpretation.

The cheese sauce is then spread on toasted bread and then broiled.

I used whole grain English muffin, toasted, spread my cheese sauce - made with a little wine and a lot of cashew milk to thicken, a little Daiya and a bit of Hot Hungarian Paprika - and broiled it.

I grilled a tomato and some green beans to accompany my Welsh Rarebit, but I dare say, mine is a Hungarian Rarebit. It's about time, too - the Hungarians have been missing out.

(I think; I'm not actually sure whether or not we have a Rarebit to call our own, but it is certain that if we didn't before, we do now!)

Cost Breakdown:

cashew: $1

Daiya: $2.50

English Muffin: $4

tomato and green beans: $3

spices and wine: $.50

Total to feed a family of 5:

$11.00

Rarebit Recipe

no tuna salad wrap

When Cat was young, her two favorite meals were Mac n' Cheese and Tuna Salad. Needless to say, veganism saved her from being doomed to eat the same way most American kids eat now days.

While this salad is not tasting of fish in every bite, it is quite delicious and actually better for you than the mercury-filled, over fished 'chicken' of the sea. And while Mikel did not touch tuna with a ten-foot pole, this sandwich he likes, too.

Using chickpeas is great because this legume hold its shape and has a firm texture. I cooked my beans so they can be mashed better, but using canned is fine, too. The texture will be different because canned beans are cooked to just-done whereas I cooked my beans a little over.

I added celery, onions, dill (Mikel asked me to skip on that next time), Old Bay, garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Dulse flakes would have been a great addition, but it was too early in the morning for my brain, I guess.

I cooked 1 1/2 c of dry chickpeas for a yield of 3 3/4 c cooked. This amount only needed 1/4 to 1/2 c of veganiase because the beans are creamy themselves.

I wrapped them in spinach and sun-dried tomato tortillas and we went off to kayak. Great picnic food!

Cost Breakdown:

beans: $1

onion, celery, garlic, lemon: $2

wraps: $3

lettuce, tomato, spices: $1.50

Total to make 5 wraps:

$7.50